Geelong children among the states top perpetrators, according to sentencing data

New data has revealed that Geelong’s youth are responsible for a statewide surge in family violence intervention orders.

Geelong children are nearly more than twice as likely to go to court for committing family violence than their metropolitan peers, according to a new study.

In a report released by Sentencing Council Victoria this week it revealed that Geelong and Bendigo children were responsible for a surge in family violence intervention order (FVIO) applications reported across the state during 2019 and 2020.

Sentencing Advisory Council Chair Professor Arie Freiberg said he did not have an explanation for why cases where higher in the Geelong area, but said it was rather a “regional phenomenon”.

“I don’t think it indicates that Geelong children are more violent, it often indicates a lack of social infrastructure available to support families in many circumstances,” he said.

“Some rural and regional areas have more social problems than others and services may not be as good.”

The number of sentenced cases involving breaches of safety notices and intervention orders more than doubled in the Children’s Court between 2011 and 2019 from 97 to 245 cases.

Professor Freiberg said the increase could be attributed to an “artefact of higher community awareness.”

“This is partly due to an increased awareness of family violence,” he said.

“There is no doubt that people are more willing to report and police more willing to take action.”

The report stated that cases of family violence committed by an adolescent often differed from those committed by an adult as it was less gendered and was typically directed against a parent or sibling rather than a partner.

These cases often coincided with property damage offences.

Children living in rural and regional Victoria accounted for 48 per cent of final FVIOs where children are the respondents, despite just 24 per cent of the state’s child population living in those areas.

Geelong children are twice as likely to go to court for committing family violence.

“A child in rural and regional Victoria is effectively more than twice as likely as a child in the Greater Melbourne area to be a respondent to a FVIO, especially in Gippsland, Loddon Mallee and Barwon South West,” it reads.

BCYF (Barwon children, youth and family) manager for family and community service Toni Gauntlet said most incidents of youth family violence were directed at female parents, with the report suggesting it may be the result of women being the primary caregivers.

“Compared with adults, incidents involving adolescents were less likely to involve drug or alcohol use but were more likely to involve primary aggressor mental health problems or suicidality,” she said.

Targeting youth violence and aggressive behaviours, BCYF formed a 12-to-24-week intervention program called Step Up- Building Healthy Relationships (BHR).

The program provides support to young people aged 10 to 17, who are using violent and aggressive behaviours against a parent or carer.

‘Step Up- BHR is underpinned by a focus on the young person’s relationship with their family and community and a recognition that behavioural change can only occur through individual support delivered within the broader family and community context,” she said.

Originally published as Geelong children among the states top perpetrators, according to sentencing data